Sugar High. Nicole Hampton

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      • More baking powder/soda fixes sinking cakes: In fact, the reason that cakes sink at higher altitudes is because the leavening agent rises much faster up here, causing the cake to rise much too quickly. Then, it proceeds to fall and ruin your day. Reducing your baking powder or baking soda slightly, rather than increasing it, can help prevent cakes from sinking.

      • Adding more salt will help with the lack of flavor: Of course, you should add at least a pinch of salt to any baked item, but at a high altitude, lack of salt is likely not the issue. Since liquids evaporate faster up here during baking, you’ll actually want to add more liquid to your recipe if flavor is an issue. Too much liquid may change the entire texture of the dough or batter, but usually a couple of teaspoons extra of oil, milk, or other liquid helps with flavor.

      • Letting yeast dough rise longer helps: Yeast breads are the bane of my existence. They’re definitely the most challenging types of high-altitude recipes for me. Again, the leavening is going to rise much faster here, so you’ll actually want to let the dough rise for less time than normal. It’s also common for folks to use cold water instead of warm, or to punch down the dough more frequently to help slow down the rise.

      HIGH ALTITUDE AND YOUR RECIPES

      Now that we have these basics out of the way, let’s get down to the recipes. Let’s

      talk through how several types of recipes

      are affected by altitude, and what you can do to make them work. You don’t have to experiment blindly; if you have the right tips and tricks in place, you can really make most recipes work. The next time you see a pretty cake on Pinterest, or some adorable dinner rolls shaped like bunnies, these tips will help

      you give them a shot with confidence.

      Before trying a new recipe, read through these tips and tricks to help make it successful the first time around. Keep in mind that the same things that work for cake recipes won’t do the trick for bread, and vice versa. Get settled in, I got you.

      Quick breads, scones, and muffins:

      These types of baked goods that aren’t super sweet, and also aren’t made using yeast, are usually fairly simple to make, but you should still keep some adaption tips in mind: • Of all types of baking recipes, quick breads are most important to avoid overmixing. Most of the time, unless indicated otherwise, you want the end batter or dough to still be lumpy.

      • It’s important to achieve a golden-brown top for these baked goods. If you aren’t reaching it at the suggested oven temperature, increase it by 25°F, and decrease the baking time.

      • Moisture can be an issue at altitude, particularly with muffins. Consider adding another 2 to 3 teaspoons of whatever liquid you are using in the batter, or of water. Another option is to add 1⁄4 cup of sour cream to a muffin recipe that yields 12 muffins.

      Yeast breads: The first time that you make a perfect loaf of bread, or the perfect cinnamon rolls, it’s a truly joyous occasion. I’m talkin’ Champagne all around. Here are some tips and tricks for bread recipes: • Decrease your total rising time when working with yeast bread; you can even put the dough in the refrigerator to slow down the rising process.

      • Pay close attention to the actual size of the dough (you’ll see cues in the recipes, for example, “…until doubled in size”) more than the rise time. Rising often happens

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      HIGH-ALTITUDE BAKING TIPS